Australia's tradie shortage has cast a long shadow over the construction industry, with far-reaching consequences for home building and affordability. The shortfall in skilled tradespeople was estimated to be as high as 480,000 by 2026. To tackle this shortage, the federal government’s budget for 2024 has allocated $90 million towards increasing a pipeline of skilled workers in the construction and housing industry.
The roots of the tradie shortage problem run deep, with factors like a longstanding struggle to attract young Australians into building apprenticeships, additionally, disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic, such as, the closure of borders curtailed the influx of skilled migrants. Without the extra hands on deck, Brendan Wekeem, owner of an Adenbrook Homes franchise in Brisbane, highlights the repercussions of not enough tradies, "Homes are more expensive and taking longer to build as a result of the shortage."
Knowing this, the federal government's ambitious target of constructing 1.2 million new homes by 2029 would have faced significant hurdles if left unaddressed. Now with the government taking action by investing in training and education, an additional 20,000 fee-free TAFE places and incentives will be available to attract more people into the construction industry.
Skills and Training Minister Brendan O’Connor said: “This is a great opportunity for people to gain a trade while accessing government incentives and reduce cost of living pressures through more affordable housing.”
The new 15,000 TAFE places will be across different roles in housing and construction and will be allocated based on what skills are most needed in each state and territory. There will be 5000 pre-apprenticeships that will bolster the pipeline for trade apprenticeships critical to the housing and construction sectors, such as carpenters, plumbers, and bricklayers. Access the full budget on the Federal Government’s 2024-2025 website.
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Source: https://www.realestate.com.au/news/australias-tradie-shortage-where-will-we-find-480000-new-builders/